WY Supreme Court Sides With Superintendent Cindy Hill

A divided Wyoming Supreme Court has ruled that a new law stripping many powers and duties from the state superintendent of public instruction is unconstitutional.

The court's 3-2 ruling Tuesday came in a lawsuit by Republican state schools Superintendent Cindy Hill challenging the law enacted a year ago by the GOP-controlled Legislature and Republican Gov. Matt Mead.

The law took effect in the middle of Hill's four-year term. The superintendent remained one of the five statewide elected officials but no longer oversaw the Wyoming Department of Education.

Hill argued the law made a fundamental change to state government and should have required an amendment to the state Constitution.

The state contended that the Wyoming Constitution empowers the Legislature to manage the state's education system, including the superintendent's administrative role.